Number: 1979-37
WHEREAS, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is preparing to begin comprehensive resource planning in its administered western lands, including the identification and designation of “areas of critical environmental concern,” forage allocations, and other multiple-use decisions; and
WHEREAS, this review will also determine which BLM-administered lands are unsuitable for surface mining for coal; and
WHEREAS, the extent of the need for additional coal leasing on public land, beyond the extensive areas already under lease or subject to preference right lease application, should be balanced against the severe environmental and social impacts of large-scale coal development;
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the National Wildlife Federation in annual meeting assembled March 22-25, 1979, in Toronto, Ontario, that the opening up of BLM-administered lands for further coal leasing be permitted only after comprehensive resource management plans are completed for those lands, and the need for further leasing, in view of the present commitments, is firmly established.